Mohan pointed out that the Internet of Things needs a series of open application programming interfaces (APIs) and communication protocols that match different physical layer networks. In this mode, he believes that the role of the Internet of Things should be more like an IT network. Mohan, who specializes in network technology, is the co-founder of Enlighted. He has worked in CNC equipment manufacturers such as Cisco, Novell and Novell, and has developed multi-protocol routers in Hughes.

　　"If anyone tries to build a physical layer that applies to everything on top of the application layer and push a software stack based on it, it won’t work." Mohan said that the IP layer and the network layer should not intersect with the media, and the "last mile" communication protocol has some scenes, but its importance is not as high as people think; It doesn’t matter which communication protocol a network node adopts, because an intermediary device will be needed in any case.

　　Mohan further pointed out: "Today Zigbee is the most cost-effective solution, but Wi-Fi will provide a clearer answer in the future. Every few years, a new network management protocol will emerge, such as SNMP or CORBA, and the field of Internet of Things will continue to evolve, so people will need an open API. "

　　Mohan also believes that the 250 kbit/s Zigbee standard is too slow and complicated for building control applications: "You don’t want the network to become a bottleneck, but Zigbee is one of the slowest communication protocols I know; It is suitable for some domestic markets, but it is not feasible in the commercial field. Zigbee may be applied to some large buildings, but it requires a lot of manual support and customized solutions, which is expensive. "

　　For example, Mohan pointed out that if someone is using Wi-Fi network streaming, the door controlled by Zigbee may not open, and users must confirm that each floor uses different wireless channels: "You can’t sell such a solution to current electrical technicians because they are not proficient in RF technology."

　　He believes that Zigbee has not learned from the network industry, and its current development needs too much manual support, and it has never left the initial adoption stage: "Lighting control solution suppliers do not understand the network security they need, and this communication protocol will always be in a backward state; If Aruba, Cisco and other system vendors are allowed to dominate Zigbee, they will find ways to run ahead. "

　　Mohan also said that emerging alternatives such as 6LoWPAN are not ideal, because the packet header of Internet Protocol (IP) takes up too much bandwidth: "IP is not designed for low-bandwidth applications, so they try to transform it to make it more efficient, but we need someone to consider it all over again and maybe include new spectrum."

　　Business opportunities in the field of building control are unlimited. Mohan estimates that there are 80 million square feet of commercial premises in the United States alone, while the global market is two to three times as large. Considering that there will be a new round of demand growth in the market, Enlighted raised $20 million about nine months ago: "We need explosive growth in the next few years."

　　Enlighted has many large old competitors in the market, such as Lutron and WattStopper；, which is now owned by Legrand, the world’s largest electrical contractor. The company hopes to gain an advantage in data collection and analysis of motion sensors. Mohan, for example, said that if the projector in the meeting room doesn’t know where it went, Enlighted can provide an animation of the moving route of the device in the building to help determine who took it: "This is our exclusive technology."

　　At present, Enlighted is deploying new applications, such as HVAC optimization using existing user analysis data; The company also plans to establish a new strategic alliance in 2015. At first, Enlighted used power line network, Ethernet and 802.15.4 wireless network to build the building control network. Later, it was found that power line and Ethernet were expensive and consumed a lot of electricity, so it gradually focused on the 802.15.4 wireless solution.

　　The demand for more bandwidth prompted Enlighted to develop its own communication protocol, using Atmel integrated 15.4 chip with its own digital signal processing software. Mohan said that the amount of data they collected was much higher than expected, but it also proved that the rate of 15.4 wireless scheme could exceed 250 kbit/s, so they developed their own wireless communication technology; Now the company is waiting for a solution to solve the interoperability problem of the Internet of Things. No matter who wins, they are ready to upgrade.